West Lebanon -- The first two months in business for Earth Deco had gone well, all things considered.

The enviro-friendly gift store turned a small profit in October, the worst single month for retail in the United States since 1971. And though November started slowly, business was beginning to pick up as the holidays approached.

Then, a political uprising in Thailand, literally halfway around the world, threatened to kill the momentum.

“We're in the middle of the holiday season and we order a lot of gift items from there,” said Trevor Law, a co-owner of Earth Deco in the Glen Road Plaza on Route 12A. “That basically shut (us) down in the middle of our biggest season.”

For the past week, Law's inventory of bronze statues, silk frames and other gifts from Thailand has started to run thin. He was unable to get more of the goods while Bangkok's largest airport was immobilized by anti-government protesters.

The People's Alliance for Democracy wanted Thailand's prime minister to step down, and its takeover severed Thailand's air links to the outside world and stranded more than 300,000 tourists.

On Wednesday, the group ended the siege and the first commercial flight in a week arrived in Bangkok. But the airport may not be fully functional until mid-December, and the political tension remains.

Those events may have seemed remote to people in the Upper Valley, but for Law, the uprising has had a significant impact on his business. About two-thirds of his inventory comes from Thailand, and most of that from small family-owned companies that lack the resources to survive long without exporting their goods.

Law's store specializes in sustainable furniture from around the world, and in particular, the Far East. Much of the furniture and gift items are made from recycled wood or material harvested in environmentally responsible ways. Law's inspiration came from a trip to Thailand last year.

He attended a trade show there, thinking of starting a side-business selling sustainable goods online. But the quality and uniqueness of the items he saw in Thailand convinced him to take the idea further.

“When I saw the wide variety they had and really interesting pieces, I thought, maybe I can actually do this as a retail business,” he said.

He visits the country often and was there just two weeks ago, selecting merchandise to bring back with him for the store. His direct relationship with suppliers has some advantages. He gets products not found anywhere else in the region or even the United States. He can verify working conditions and where the material is coming from, and also avoids the markup applied by wholesalers.

But when something -- such as a natural disaster or government action -- disrupts the local infrastructure, it can cut off his suppliers and damage the viability of his business. If he bought through third party importers, they might have stockpiled inventories to sell while the situation is resolved. Otherwise, Law is on his own.

“The risk, of course, is that you're more exposed,” he said. “There are going to be some shipments we just aren't going to get in time for the holidays.”

One importer in Rutland said he had not been hurt much by the turmoil, though he was close to getting caught in the mess. Steve Mustukas, owner of Nusantara, imports Asian handicrafts. He was scheduled to go to Thailand on Nov. 28, just three days after the airport takeover.

He said he has enough silk scarves and silver jewelry to “ride it out for years,” but said it is still important that he visit Thailand in the next couple weeks. His customer base of boutique retailers and catalogs want new merchandise every six months or so.

“We have a lot of shows coming up in January and we need a lot of new stuff,” Mustukas said. “That's what they expect.”

The airport closure was “an inconvenience, but not a big deal,” he said. It is a big deal to Law, however, and not just because it hurts his store.

He is concerned for his suppliers, the mom and pop operations that he has come to know. He also has some friends in Thailand. For Law, the business of global trade has become very personal.

“It's always a risk, anything involved in global trade,” he said. “For such a wonderful, gracious people, they have a terrible political system.”

The Associated Press contributed to this story.

Chris Fleisher can be reached at (603) 727-3229 or cfleisher@vnews.com.